Inclusive School: A Task (Still and Always) Ahead of Us

It is widely recognized that since the 1970s, Italy has had one of the most advanced legal frameworks supporting the inclusion of individuals with disabilities within the school system. In this paper, I undertake a philosophical-educational reflection to explore some of the traditions that may have contributed to shaping the cultural background of Italy’s commitment to inclusive education. Adopting a distinction drawn by Rorty (1998), my approach does not aim to provide a historical reconstruction—i.e., a description of the theories that have directly influenced the scholarly debate on special education and inclusion. Rather, it constitutes a form of Geistesgeschichte in Rorty’s specific sense of “canon-formation.” In this endeavor, I take my point of departure from the birth of the Italian Republic. While Italy does not have a tradition of constitutional patriotism in the strictest sense, the Italian Constitution—rooted in explicitly antifascist values—has served as the normative reference point for subsequent legislation on inclusive education (Arconzo, 2020). Moreover, it has provided a framework of ideals and principles, replacing the concept of the ethical State with an emphasis on the individual and the intermediate bodies of society. I will begin by examining the notion of the ethical State as it was articulated in his latest (and, indeed, extreme) reflection by Giovanni Gentile, the most eminent and influential educational philosopher of early 20th-century Italy. In a dramatic and, to a large extent, testamentary book published in 1943, Gentile introduced the idea of the “transcendental society” or “society in interiore homine.” I argue that, even setting aside his Fascist allegiances, the most problematic aspect of Gentile’s thought—particularly from the perspective of a philosophy of inclusion—is precisely this central notion in his late philosophy. In contrast with it, I will introduce what has been termed the “pedagogy of dissent” (Zangrilli, 1973), associated with the figures of Aldo Capitini, Don Lorenzo Milani, and Danilo Dolci. Although, to the best of my knowledge, none of these thinkers directly contributed to the discourse on inclusive education concerning individuals with disabilities, their theories and educational practices offer a significant Italian trajectory for conceptualizing inclusion. In particular, Capitini—a former student of Gentile—reverses his teacher’s philosophy from within, introducing the idea of “openness” as a meta-value of antifascism and, arguably, of any inclusive endeavor. Similarly, Danilo Dolci and Don Milani offer compelling perspectives on inclusion (broadly understood) as a fundamental task of democratic society. Finally, I will briefly touch on the anti-institutionalization theories of Franco Basaglia—a psychiatrist with a strong philosophical background—as yet another significant influence on the Italian approach to inclusion. As stated earlier, my aim is not to provide a historical reconstruction but rather to outline a preliminary map of the Italian contribution to conceiving inclusion as the central axis of what Dewey termed creative democracy—a phrase that also inspires the title of this paper. This reference to Dewey is not merely an external addition to my argument but rather a natural extension of it, given the significant influence of his philosophical and educational work on the reconstruction of Italian educational discourse after World War II

L’accordo tra Santa Sede e Cina per la nomina dei Vescovi

Rapporti Cina Santa Sed

Bio-based adhesives from spent coffee grounds: A sustainable pathway using medium chain length polyhydroxyalkanoates

: This study explores the synthesis of medium chain length polyhydroxyalkanoates (mcl-PHA) from Spent Coffee Grounds (SCGs) oil, and its application as a bio-based Pressure Sensitive Adhesive (PSA) for food packaging materials. The mcl-PHA was produced through the bioreactor fermentation of Pseudomonas resinovorans, yielding 40 % (gpolymer/gCDW) under single pulse modality. The polymer showed heterogenous monomer composition from C6 to C18, endowed with 20 % unsaturation. As a PSA, the material was evaluated on stainless steel, low-density polyethylene (LDPE), cellulose (CELL), and mixed LDPE/CELL substrates. Tack testing revealed strong adhesion yet relatively low adhesive cohesion. Cyclic debonding tests demonstrated full recovery of adhesive strength, consistent with the polymer's viscoelasticity. Lap shear and peel tests on flexible plastics substrates highlighted strong affinity to cellulose (peel strength: 37.2 N m-1) attributed to the high polar component of the surface free energy of mcl-PHA (σSP = 24.9 mN m-1). Weaker adhesive performances were noted on LDPE (peel strength: 3.8 N m-1). Recovery of mcl-PHA was achieved through acetone dissolution, enabling its potential reuse. The results highlight SCGs-derived mcl-PHA as a sustainable PSA candidate, particularly for cellulose-based substrates, while underscoring challenges in bonding non-polar surfaces like LDPE

Le implicazioni penalistiche: Strasburgo solleva il velo sulle incongruenze della legislazione italiana (prima del 2015)

Il contributo analizza le implicazioni penalistiche della sentenza Cannavacciuolo, soffermandosi sulle aporie e incongruenze della legislazione italiana a tutela dell'ambiente prima del 2015

IN VIVO EVALUATION OF CYTOTOXIC AND GENOTOX-IC RESPONSES INDUCED BY TITANIUM DIOXIDE NANOPARTICLES (TIO2-NPS) IN GOLDFISH (CARASSIUS AURATUS).

Titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2-NPs) are widely used in industrial and consumer products,1 raising concerns about their ecotoxicological effects, especially in aquatic environments. With the expansion of nanotechnology, artificial particles are increasingly released into the environment and, due to their structure, often different from natural substances, they tend to persist and degrade slowly, posing risks to organisms lacking natural defense mechanisms.2 Once released, it can be absorbed by aquatic organisms and enter the food chain. Prior studies, such as Rocco et al.3, have shown that TiO2-NPs exposure causes DNA damage and genomic instability in zebrafish. This study aimed to assess in vivo cytotoxic and genotoxic effects in goldfish (Carassius auratus), exposed to 10 μg/L TiO2-NPs for 14 and 21 days. A control group (NC) was maintained without exposure. Three assays were per- formed: eosin Y staining for cell viability, NBT test for ROS pro- duction, and TUNEL test for DNA fragmentation. The results showed a significant reduction in cell viability, especially at the end of the longest exposure period (21 days), with a decrease of 78.6% compared to 96% observed in NC. In addition, a significant production of ROS was observed in the treated samples, with an increase of 27.98% at 14 days and 36% at 21 days. Similarly, a sig- nificant increase in DNA fragmentation was recorded, equal to 24% at 14 days and 28% at 21 days, compared to controls, which show a fragmentation of 13% and 15%, respectively. Furthermore, another aspect observed was the color change of the livery of the exposed specimens, which showed a change from a reddish- orange to blackish shades, suggesting a possible visible effect of prolonged exposure. These data indicate that exposure to TiO2- NPs causes cytotoxic and genotoxic effects in goldfish, effects that become more evident with the prolongation of exposure time. The increase in oxidative stress, DNA damage and the granting of cell viability suggests that these nanoparticles, can have a significant biological impact. The consistency between the results of the three tests strengthens the hypothesis of a potential ecotoxicological risk and underlines the importance of a more rigorous regulatory monitoring of the release of TiO2-NPs in environment

Arbitrato di investimento e diritto europeo: controllo endoesecutivo di conformità del lodo al divieto di aiuti di stato e sospensione dell'esecuzione ai sensi dell'art. 624 c.p.c.

La notoria avversione della giurisprudenza della Corte di Giustizia nei riguardi dei sistemi di risoluzione delle controversie tra privati e Stati membri affidate ad arbitri privati, per carente legittimazione degli arbitri al rinvio pregiudiziale, alimenta un crescente numero di questioni processuali che inevitabilmente si porranno dapprima negli arbitrati di investimento e quindi nel loro seguito sul versante esecutivo davanti ai giudici togati nazionali. Nel presente scritto, occasionato dall’esame ravvicinato di uno di questi contenziosi arbitrali, per più versi “seriali”, si analizzano anzitutto gli effetti promananti dal lodo di condanna favorevole all’investitore nell’ordinamento giuridico italiano e, in secondo luogo, si individuano gli eventuali motivi ostativi alla esecuzione del lodo nello Stato membro e le soluzioni più congeniali per riconciliare la tutela esecutiva del credito del vincitore in arbitrato con le esigenze di rispetto dei valori fondamentali dell’ordinamento eurounitario. The European Court of Justice’s well-known idiosyncrasy against arbitration between Member States and private investors, because of the arbitrators’ lack of standing to refer preliminary interpretative issues of European law, has given rise to a growing number of procedural issues. Even further issues shall arise in the course of proceedings for the enforcement of investment awards before national courts. In this essay, we first enquire the effects attached to a condemnatory award in favor of the investor within the Italian legal system; second, we enquire whether there are any grounds to oppose the enforcement of such awards; and third, we enquire possible ways to reconcile the winning party’s right to effectively enforce the award with the public policy need that fundamental principles of European law are complied with by the arbitrators’ decision